This orange cake recipe is two things: ‘orangey’ (it’s piled with the zest of six oranges, two lemons, orange juice, and then orange syrup), and also perfect in texture. It uses olive oil rather than butter as its base, making it half way between a cake and a pudding (think sticky toffee pudding consistency, but with a zinging orange citrus flavour). It’s designed to be a proper showstopper rather than your run-of-the-mill sponge, so takes a couple more steps than normal, but it’s so worth it…I made this as my wedding cake!

Orange Olive Oil Cake Recipe

Prep Time: 30 Mins

Cook Time: 60 Mins

Difficulty: Easy

Serves: 1 Loaf Tin Sized Cake

Ingredients

  • Orange Zest - 6 Large Oranges (or Blood Oranges)

  • Lemon Zest - 3 Lemons

  • Orange (or Blood Orange) Juice - 100g

  • Caster Sugar - 200g

  • Double Cream (or Greek yoghurt, or milk) - 56g

  • Eggs - 3 Medium

  • Olive Oil (or Mandarin Oil if you can find it) - 156g

  • Plain Flour - 220g

  • Baking Powder - 1 tsp

  • Baking Soda - 0.25 tsp

  • Salt - 0.25 tsp

For the Orange Juice Glaze

  • Orange Juice - 75g

  • Caster Sugar - 50g

Method

Orange Cake Step One - Sugar Zest

First up in our challenge to get as much orange flavour into the cake as possible is to infuse the sugar with the orange and lemon zest. Wash, dry, and zest the oranges and lemons.

Before the zest dries out, mix it into the sugar. The oils from the zest will change the colour and consistency of the sugar (it’ll also smell amazing). Set aside the sugar zest until later.

 

Orange Cake Step Two - Lining the Tin

I like to make my orange cake in a normal sized loaf tin (but the quantities work equally well with an 8” round cake tin).

Oil the tin and place in the base a cut sheet of parchment (“baking”) paper.

Pre-heat the oven to 160°C (180°C for non-fan ovens).

 

Orange Cake STEP Three - Flour to the People

Sieve together into one bowl the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

 

Orange Cake STEP Four - Citrus Oil

The trick here is NOT to whip too much air into the wet mixture (the opposite of a normal cake) as for us the baking soda mixing with the cream will give us the rise.

In a separate bowl, stir together the orange juice and double cream. Stir in the sugar zest.

Add in the eggs and oil and whisk (but only enough to combine - again we’re not trying to whisk too much air into the mix).

 

Orange Cake STEP Five - Bring it All Together

Pour about half the liquid mix into the flour, and stir until combined. Then add the remaining liquid and stir until the mixture is loosened to a cake batter consistency (it’s okay if there are still a few small lumps in there).

Pour the cake batter into the pre-lined tin and place in the over for c. 1 hour until it has risen, taken on some colour, and leaves a skewer placed through the middle clear of any batter.

Then remove from the oven and allow to start to cool.

 

Orange Cake STEP SIX - Orange Cake

Orange Cake FC.jpg

Whilst the cake’s cooling, add the orange juice for the syrup and caster sugar to a pan over a low heat until the sugar is dissolved.

Put half the syrup over the cake (it helps absorption if you poke holes in it with a skewer). Then remove the cake from the tin and place on a cooling rack.

Pour the remaining syrup evenly over each of the remaining sides of the cake, and allow to completely cool.

And that’s it, hope you enjoy!